Hush Little Baby
by Dead Again
Summary: Note: All of the characters depicted in this fanfic are of my own creation. They are however set in the Hills Have Eyes universe.
1. Chapter 1

**Hush Little Baby**

_Dead Again_

"**T**here were stories. More than that they were legends, urban legends to be exact, spreading across the continental USA like a wildfire in summer. There was this family that was heading through the New Mexico desert on a road-trip to god knows where when their truck carrying a motor home breaks down leaving them stranded. To make matters worse there was no cell phone reception that far into the desert and after a day of waiting for another car to come down the sun beaten road night rolls through the desert. With the starry skies grotesque abominations of people began coming from the rocky hills picking the family off, one by one. The lucky ones died firs-" The blonde woman's dark, lyrical voice was silenced by a playful shove.

"Cut it out Tiane, you know I scare easy," The short dark haired woman whined.

"I believe I was in the middle of a story, Lola, so if you would keep your hands to yourself we could get on with making you wet yourself some more," Tiane said shooting her a devilish smile.

"Scaring Lola is one thing but my boyfriend is another, although it might just be that this story is amazingly similar to our situation", The driver's voice drifted from the front of the jade colored van to the back where Tiane, Lola, Dan and Michael were all sitting.

"You know what Candice? Just because I like to check around the hills doesn't mean I'm scared, I'm just cautious… so fuck you," The red head with dreads down to the small of his back sitting shotgun said looking over at the brunette driver beside him before casting his gaze back towards the red mountainous surroundings.

"Come on baby you know you're just a big old pussy with long hair… and I love you", Candice voice was high and whimsical; she kept her eyes on the road. It was like driving on mars, the sun was high beating down on the little van jetting across the dusty red desert on a lonely road, in fact they were the only ones on the road.

"Yeah… I love you too babe", Mark said a little distracted looking over at the tiny cave openings in the hills.

"You can check all you want but they don't come out until nightfall," Tiane said leaning in between the driver and passenger seats looking at the back his head.

"Blow me, bitch," Mark responded not even looking back at her, Tiane and Mark always did everything they could to bug each other since she was born, he had been torturing her as all brothers do but the older they got the more she got one over on him and began turning the tables. Meanwhile, Dan sat with his back pressed against on of the bland interior walls of the van just behind a wheel well with Lola leaning on him wearing one of his zip-up hoodies which was far too big for her. Both had been sleeping since the last gas station a few hours ago. Michael kept quiet leaning on the opposite wall of Dan and Lola listening to Mark bickering with Tiane, a smile crept across his face. This had to be the billionth time he'd seen them get into feud but it was always a gong show and one that never stopped being entertaining.

"Would you two shut the hell up? I am trying to drive here", Candice would always end it to, otherwise it could go on for days. It had before. Mark and Candice stopped talking, she drifted back into the back of the van lying across the dark carpeting bumping along with the van. Suddenly a loud blast almost like an explosion rang through the van which now skidded on it's hubcaps shooting sparks high into the air for a little over fifty feet before finally stopping, there was no fire or smoke and the sound was too low to be the engine. The event woke up Dan and Lola who were thrown forward violently but the sudden lurching of the van, she flew off of Dan and into the outline of the wheel well with her leg sending a jagged gash across her calf. Dan was right behind her flying into the wheel well as she bounced off of it, the edges of the well found its way in between his ribcage knocking the wind out of him. Candice had it the worst being on the floor with nothing to grab on to she was sent sprawling into the drive shaft splitting her head wide open and knocking her out cold. Michael who had his feet on the wheel well on his side so when he slid forward he simply fell against his brace screaming out of shock and fear for the moments they fell prey to the lurching before it finally stopped. Mark and Tiane had been wearing their seatbelts so when the fell forward they were saved from going through the windshield and getting to know the dashboard up close and personal. Her nails dug into the rubber driver's wheel and the two of them had matching bruises striped across their torsos and waists from the violent stop.

"What the fuck just happened?" Lola's shaky voice cut through the groaning and gasping resounding throughout the inside of the van.

"Oh shit! Candice are you okay?!" Mark broke out of his groggy state when he saw his sister's figure crumpled like a rag doll against the drive shaft and fought against the seatbelt for a few moments before unclipping it and rolling her over revealing the wide gash pumping a deep crimson liquid down her face and dripping to the reddening carpet below.

"Oh god, wake up… PLEASE wake up," His voice was shaky and uneven, Lola pulled herself over to him and Candice trying to calm Mark down.

"Don't worry Mark she'll be fine I'll take care of her, me and Dan will make sure she's okay so just calm the fuck down, okay? Lola said sitting up near Candice looking up at Mark who nodded quietly with hot tears dripping down his face. Dan was still gasping slightly when he came over to see what had happened to Candice when she suddenly arched her back and let out a scream startling everyone particularly Michael who had been there stroking her hand before Lola had managed her way to them.

"Holy hell, Candice! Shit, hang on baby we'll get you bandaged up," Michael was shouting as Candice coughed and tried to sit up but was stopped by Mark's arm putting her back down in her bewildered state. Michael ripped off his sleeve and tied it around her forehead making a crude bandage, he pulled it so it was taught but not enough to hurt. Tiane unclipped her seatbelt and opened the driver side door so she could step out stumbling slightly she braced against the door frame looking in for a moment.

"I'm going to see what happened, you guys stay here and watch Candice alright?" she said before groggily stepping towards the front end of the van noticing the shredded tire.

"We blew a tire…" she started before noticing the back tire was blown too so she hurried around the front to check the passenger side tires, both were flaps of rubber barely hung onto the metal hubcaps.

"Shit we blew all of the tires and I only have one spare," she said opening the passenger door to Mark who turned around and grimaced at the news, this meant they were stranded until someone came by.

"Wait I have my phone we can call for an ambulance and a tow truck!" Dan said excitedly fumbling through his pockets for his black and blue slide phone only to have his demeanor change, his shoulders sagged with his next words.

"I got no reception out here…" his words caught everyone's attention so they all checked their phones except for Candice who was still unsure of what was happening from one moment to the next. All had the same result.

"So what now?" Michael asked still stroking Candice's hand "Where was the last town? How long ago?" he was looking up at Mark since he couldn't see Tiane behind the seat.

"I guess it was like a half an hour drive since our last fill up? I don't really know, we can't really walk that far, especially not with Candice in her condition," she said turning around and leaning against the green van's outer wall.

"I'll go and get some help then, an-and I'll come back just don't worry it'll only take a day or two and i'll bring some water bottles and I'll come back with help don't worry I'll be back", Michael let go of Candice's hand clearly frantic and drifted past Dan to the back of the van grabbing a couple of water battles from the red cooler strapped to the luggage back there before climbing over it all and opening the back door falling to his feet in the dusty red desert.

"Michael… you can't g-," Tiane began but was cut off by Michael.

"Don't worry I'll be fine, everything will be fine you'll see. Just take care of Candice for me and I'll be back," He said wearing a smile but still clearly panicked he closed the van doors and jogging down the road despite Tiane's protests. She walked towards the back of the van watching him as he went down the dusty road shaking her head, Dan was looking over Lola's leg which was still bleeding. He went through the luggage finding a maroon suitcase, he brought the suitcase closer to Lola opening it and taking out a plain white t-shirt he wrapped her calf and tied it off tight like Michael had done with Candice.

"Ow… damn it Dan, not so tight," Lola called back at him while he was tying off the reddening shirt around her leg.

"Sorry…. I didn't mean to…" He responded a little disheartened as he retied the shirt a little looser but still taught and sat back up against the van wall.

"It's okay, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to snap at you it's just that this is one fuck up of a trip after another, how the hell did we even blow all four tires anyway!?... wait, how did we blow all of tires?" she said looking over at Mark who was hanging out the door looking at Tiane. She froze for a moment staring up at Mark before the two of them dashed over to the back of the van then began jogging down the road, the same direction as Michael and after around fifty yards he noticed something glinting on the road.

"Jesus…" he muttered kneeling down and brushing off a layer of dust off of an old police issue spike strip running the with of the road, little bits of black rubber is hanging off of some of the spikes.

"What does these mean? Tiane asked leaning over Mark to see the spike strip closer.

"It means someone wanted to make sure we couldn't get out of the god forsaken value," he replied dropping the strip kicking up dust as it clattered to the road. Meanwhile Michael drenched in sweat from the heat and the constant jogging had just made it up to the stony hills, one of the water bottles had been emptied and left behind on the road somewhere a little while back. His other water bottle was already half empty and as he was regaining his senses Michael knew he had to go back so he stopped short of having to climb over a small cliff edge and turned around.

"What the fu-," Michael started to say after coming face to face with a grotesquely distorted face, it was like a human except his face was bulbous and had an overpowering brow but what really got Michael were the eyes, one of them was bigger by a few centimeters and completely empty inside as if it was dead and the other was beady holding only contempt. He was frozen in place, time seemed to drag on forever but it couldn't have been more than a second before the creature swung his arm up but as he tried to back away from the impending blow he noticed out the corner of his eye. The slender wooden shaft of a pick axe wrapped in fat warty fingers coming with the upswing, the head of the pick axe crashed into the bottom of Michael's jaw smashing it into the base of his skull and the piercing metal ripped through his head shooting up from the other side drenched in blood spilling brain matter and more of the crimson liquid through the humid air. The creature pulled Michael down to the ground and began dragging his body into one of the cave openings disappearing into the long forgotten mines.

"Who would want to strand us out here in the middle of nowhere?" Candice spoke up first after Tiane and Mark had come back to the van with their new, those were the first words she had said since the accident that made any sense.

"Probably some sick, perverted motherfucker watching us from the mountains, waiting for nightfall when we're tired and can't see two feet out from the van," Tiane jumped into the passenger seat looking back at Lola and Dan who shared apprehensive looks with each other.

"That or it's some long forgotten police barricade type thing, I mean it's not like anyone really drives through here so who knows how long it could have been laying there," Dan spoke up sensing the tension and distress filling the van, it seemed to calm Candice down at least. Mark came around the front of the van and hopped into the driver's seat closing the door behind him, Tiane did the same for fear of the unknown lurking in those hills. In a small, crudely dug trench near the base of the hills to the van's right was another mutated person, her face looked as if it had been pulled back making her face taught and pulling her nose into nothing more than two slits in her face. A pair of large binoculars was set in front of her beady eyes as she watched the five teenagers sitting in their van, she couldn't see much but she grabbed the old military style walkie talkie at her belt and spoke into it with a gruff voice.

"There are five of them now, one went off but he won't make it far… George was out that way, yes, we'll wait for night," a buzzing on the other end was her communication. She never took her eyes off of them until the sun fell below the horizon casting an eerie darkness throughout the valley.


	2. Chapter 2

**A **pair of neon bright beams split through the darkness brought by nightfall sending bright light twenty feet out from the headlights on the green van, all of the doors were closed, Candice is fully conscience now with a pounding headache. Unknown to the any of the five teenagers inside the van, a small group of three horrible mutated people were coming down from dug out trenches in the sandy base of the small, red mountain range. One was almost normal looking except that the left side of his temple had grown significantly bigger than the other pulsing with huge veins and stretching the skin on his entire left side of the face permanently opening his left eye revealing a starring eye, always staring. The second "person's" eyes were sunken into his head darting around quickly at the smallest of movements; he lacked any form of lips exposing his jagged, blackened teeth to any who could stand to look at his charred face. The final mutated man had small dents covering his hairless scalp, all of the pimpled flesh covering his body sagged low from his minuscule muscles. Far lower than any even the oldest of any normal man all of his face that could be seen was a spotted nose and hateful dark slits for eyes. The woman who had been watching with binoculars was still at her perch, still looking through those binoculars and getting ready to enjoy the show that was about to begin.

"I guess we wait for Michael to come back, there's not much else we can do at this point," Lola said sitting cross legged in the back of the van beside Dan who was leaning back onto his arms with his legs straight out in front of him. Candice was sitting with her legs slightly bent; her back leaned against the passenger seat while her brother sat sideways in the same seat. Tiane had gotten out of the driver's seat and sat beside Candice in between the two.

"I suppose… I just hate feeling this useless…" Tiane responded rubbing the back of her neck briefly before relaxing and letting her arm fall into her lap. The five of them sat there in a thick silence for what felt like eons before anyone spoke up again, as it was that person was Candice. She didn't speak at first she just laughed, it wasn't hysterical laughter but it was a loud, braying laugh that caught everyone off guard.

"Candice? Are you feeling okay? Maybe you should lie down", Mark started growing a little concerned at the mental state of his sister since her concussion but that only prompted more laughter.

"We've all been friends since grade school and now we're all sitting in the back of a van in awkward silence! What is this shit!?" Candice practically shouted bearing a wide grin looking from each bewildered look to the next. As everyone began to think about what she said smiles crept across their faces and they laughed too, Dan, like most of them decided that either they were all crazy or she was right.

"I hope Michael doesn't take too long, I'm starting to get hungry," Dan said once he managed to hole a straight face, Mark nodded with a grin then a look of realization crossed his face and he went for the glove box retrieving a yellow sponge cake wrapped in clear plastic.

"A Twinkie? You bastard you've been holding out on us this entire trip!" Dan laughed at Mark who had ripped the plastic off and was shoving the cream filled treat into his mouth. A knocking came from the driver's side of the van, beginning at the back of the van and trailing to just before the driver's door. It was slow and methodical but made everyone jump at the first sound and stare at the rough location of each knock. They all watched the driver side window anxiously waiting for someone to pop up, one minute passed by quickly the second dragged on and by the fifth. Mark slowly opened the passenger door still staring at the opposite window until he hopped out into the cool night air.

"I'll check it out, hang on… wait, is that Michael!?" He spoke slowly until he noticed in the distance, a barely visible figure stood directly in front of the van. Just beyond the headlights full power everyone rushed to their feet and looked out through the windshield, all gawking at the dim figure as they crouched just under the van roof. Dan held onto the driver head rest clasping it tightly, his eyes grew big then he slipped around the seat and opened the driver side door hopping into dusty ground. Lola paid no attention to Dan, she was squinting to try and make out the details of the figure, Mark was slowly stepping into the far right outskirt of headlight's beams. Candice was leaning on Tiane bearing a smile at the possibility of her love's return, Tiane simply stood and turned around to see. Dan was walking a little faster than Mark down the left side of the beams matching his speed as he caught up.

"What if it's not Michael?" Mark called at Dan briefly looking over at his shaggy friend who returned a smile, Tiane went over the passenger seat and out the door quickly jogging over to where Mark was. Lola wanted to go with her but Candice couldn't be left alone and there was no doubt in either of their minds that she'd run to meet Michael if she had the chance. So they watched anxiously as Dan, Mark and Tiane closed the gap between them and the figure.

"It's Michael", Dan called back once they a little under forty feet away, he was in a casually gait while Mark hunched over cautiously squinting to see just who this figure was. Tiane matched Dan's walk rolling her eyes as she walked side-by-side with Mark, the closer they got the clearer the figure got. It was clearly Michael, he was leaning against a dead tree which was odd since he was walking behind the van and why would he just be standing here instead of coming towards them? Mark's thoughts raced as they came closer. The driver and passenger doors were still wide open as Lola and Candice crouched fixated on the events unfolding in the clear distance.

"Michael! What are you doing back already?…" Dan asked freezing in his tracks when he finally got close enough to see him completely, the gaping, jagged wound coming out of the top of his head, the twine and rope holding him to the tree and keeping his head from sinking into his chest. Tiane let out a sharp screech when she saw the sight, squirming maggots writhed all over his head and face dripping off like a gelatinous puss. Mark lost all color and threw that Twinkie back up hunching over his knees and shaking violently, even the thought of his dead eyes starring back into his brought on an overpowering nausea. Tiane let out another screech and began to weep, she took a shaky step towards her dead friend but froze in her place hearing a screaming, sobbing woman close to her. So close that it was her she realized not able to control herself anymore, Dan just stood not able to find it in himself look away but not able to bear the sight of it he was breaking inside and couldn't show it. Lola still couldn't see anything other than the dimly lit figures moving about near Michael's figure, Candice was trying to figure out why her brother was hunched over like that. It was all so strange, she leaned over more and began feeling around for the hi-beams. Lola looked down at her for a moment before dismissing it but as she looked up again she saw a face out of the corner of her eye, a strange face. She looked back at the driver side window quickly, there stood a man with no lips and jagged, black teeth matching his evil eyes and burned face but as she let out a blood curdling scream the man seemed to smile and drift away from the window back into the dark night.

"What the hell!?" Candice shouted hitting the hi-beams and intensifying the power if the beams extending out of the headlights touching the dead tree carrying her lover's carcass. She looked up at Lola fearfully not taking a moment to look out through the windshield then followed her terror ridden eyes to the empty driver side window.

"Is this some joke, Lola? What are you taking lessons from Tiane now?" she let out a breathe of relief after she spoke looking into Lola's eyes, she started back and began babbling about a face in the window. The haunting image was burned into her brain as she looked back the window with Candice who was starting to get annoyed by what she thought was a joke.

Candice was about to lean back into a more comfortable position when a powerful hand shot out from the darkness of the open passenger door gripping a handful of hair, she didn't realize what was happening even as she pulled against the force. Lola stared in wide eyed fright at the grossly proportioned head of this other person, she couldn't move, his eye stared into hers proclaiming pain and death. Candice let out a scream as the man pulled back roughly tearing patches of her hair from her scalp and jerking her halfway out of the passenger side door. He grabbed her by the back of her shirt and threw her to the ground splitting apart her nails which she had dug into the door and seat attempting to stay out of her assailant's reach.

"Did you hear that?" Dan choked out, to no avail, Tiane was on her knees sobbing into her hands and Mark couldn't straighten himself up without having to puke up the contents of his stomach. At this point there was nothing left but stomach acid and dry heaves but it didn't stop his body from trying. Dan looked back at the van but saw only the glare from the van's hi-beams so he dismissed it as the two girls trying to see better.

"Must have been my imagination…" He muttered to himself kneeling down beside Tiane and putting an arm around her trying to get her to calm down a bit, Mark took some wobbly steps and sat with them trying to give her some comforting words.

The two other mutated men were struggling with Candice who was flailing her arms and legs as hard as she could trying to beat them off and for a while it worked, until the now very aggravated mutant gritted his dark, broken teeth and began pounding her in the face with his bony fist. Both Candice and Lola were screaming at the top of their lungs, the horrific man had pulled himself into the van and was stepping after Lola as she scrambled away across the van carpet. Her hands flew through different pockets in Dan's pale green backpack cast carelessly at the bottom of the small luggage pile frantically looking for any sort of weapon to use against the man who stood over her now. He bent down and grabbing her by the calves pulled her away from the bag spilling it's contents and dragging her close.

"No! Get away from me!" She shouted at the top of her lungs hurling the aluminum flask she had grabbed from the bag in desperation, it struck the man in his enlarged temple and ricocheted off near the driver seat. The blow had stunned him as he covered his bruising temple in pain, the joy of the hunt left his eyes and were replaced by a deadly rage. Lola turned onto her stomach pulling herself into the assortment of objects sifting through with shaking hands until she noticed a small but sharp pocket knife.

Candice's nose stained purple from bruising, blood gushing from her nostrils and deep cuts centered on the bridge of her nose running above her eyes and across her cheek bones. Her arms and legs lay in the red dirt sprawled out like a rag doll cast aside, everything was being engulfed by a persistent black haze. She tried to wave it away but found she had no strength in her arms left so she just watched it dance before her, there as no pain. None that she could feel anyway. There was an odd sensation running the length of her back. It was like millions of ants were marching up from her lower back up through her hair and disappearing like a never ending cycle. Candice looked down at herself trying to catch a glimpse at the little ants gazing at the back of two men, they both had one of her legs wrapped under their arms. She thought that was odd, and they were walking. She wondered if they could feel the ants too but couldn't form the words on her lips, the last things she saw that night were the lured stars and dark sky through a haze.

"Get the fuck away from me!" Lola screamed at the deadly man with his horrific forever entrancing eye as she scrambled to her feet and lunged at him with the knife poised for his exposed throat.

"That can't just be my imagination," Dan said softly to himself, Tiane was still gulping down breathes and Mark just sat with his arm around his staring at the sandy dirt below him. Dan got to his feet and looked back at the van but couldn't see for the glare off those hi-beams but this time he decided to check on Candice and Lola, he jogged towards the bright light shielding his eyes with a dirty arm.

The man stepped out of Lola's path grabbing her by the wrist as she stabbed at him and driving a fist into her gut knocking the air from her lungs with great force. The knife fell from her open hand clattering to the carpet silently as she doubled over gasping but not able to breathe. The moments passed dragging on as if for a lifetime until she finally sucked in air hungrily, coughing she looked into the hatred flowing from dark voids for pupils.

Dan came around to the driver side door slowing to a casual walk he pulled himself into the seat and turned around as the distorted figure through another monstrous fist into Lola's face connecting with a sickening thud. Her knees buckled under her limp body and her head shot back with violent force. Dan uttered a short yelp at the sight catching the attention of Lola's assailant who dropped her and fled out passenger door hitting the dusty, red sand running after his two companions. Dan moved quickly but not quick enough, as he reached the passenger door he knew looking into the endless night that there was no way he was going to find the figure.

From her vantage point in the hills the woman wither her skin pulled back tight watched with a creeping smile as the young, shaggy boy went back into the lit van and the other two wept for their friend's corpse all over again. She reached for her walkie talkie again.

"They have the girl, the other one is still there… they'll be expecting us tomarrow… yes, we'll change our tactics," she spoke into the walkie talkie listening to the buzzing on the other side.


	3. Chapter 3

**L**ola was hysterical, Michael was dead and strapped to a tree, Tiane was just making her through the blinding sea of light while Mark finished dry heaving as his stomach had already thrown up every little bit of food he had consumed in the last eight hours. Dan sat up against the back of the passenger seat his head sunk into his hands, he didn't want to see what he had let happen but every moment of darkness came with terrifying visions of Michaels rotting corpse and the distorted staring eye of the mutated assailant. Candice is nowhere to be found, Dan thought silently, she's probably going to end up like Michael… she probably already is. He moved slowly over to Lola and put an arm around her pulling her close and embracing her gently, he caressed her back gently with his hand cooing softly to her trying to calm her down. Looking up he noticed the passenger and driver side doors were still wide, fear began to work into his thoughts as he wondered what he would do if that creature came back. For now he cleaned up Lola's lip with his other sleeve after tearing it off of his shirt, it had stopped bleeding which was good but it looked a lot worse than it was.

"Lola… I'm going to close the doors, okay? I'll be right back," He said softly looking down at her again. She gripped his shirt a little tighter then let go after a moment of hesitation nodding and leaning back on the van's inner wall. Dan got to his feet, crouching under the roof he made his way in between the seats leaning over the passenger side and stretching out his arm until he could reach the handle. Pulling himself back and bringing the door with him he slammed it closed with a satisfying thud, then he turned around to shut the other door. His hand hesitated slightly as he leaned over the driver side remembering his two live friends still outside. Still vulnerable. That's when a face appeared from the darkness surround the open door, the eyes starred into his stopping his heart for a second in frozen terror he stood motionless.

"Hey… Mark is still throwing up in those dead bushes a little ways from Michael…" Tiane said pulling herself into the driver's seat and looking up at Dan who recoiled allowing her to sit straight up. Lola perked up when she heard Michael's name, in all the chaos she had completely forgotten about but she dreaded having to explain what happened to Candice.

"Why is Mark throwing up? Is Michael okay?" She asked shakily moving up behind Dan who jumped on the knob switching the hi-beams back to their regular lights darkening the grotesque scene in front of the van.

Mark heaved again closing his eyes as his body tried to force something out of his empty stomach, he had enough of this so he turned back not even looking at Michael again. He couldn't bear it anymore. When he looked back at the van the blinding lights were gone and now there was only a dim cone emitting from the headlights, he could see the outlines of two or maybe three people in the van but not anything detailed. He couldn't see into the van though. The interior lights had been broken since he bought the hunk of crap. Mark walked back towards the van thinking about everything that when wrong that night, who would have done something like this to Michael and more importantly. Why.

"What do you mean they took Candice!? Who were they!?" Tiane was hysterically yelling as Lola tried to explain what had happened while Dan, Mark and she were gone and why they had to go get Mark now.

"They were like people… only all wrong, god please don't make me picture them again… I can't... please," Lola started crying again trying to fight back the overpowering fear as tears began welling up and dropping down from her cheeks darkening the carpet below. Dan opened his mouth to speak but no sound came out, there was nothing to say. Nothing that could make her feel better. Nothing to make her feel safe. Tiane sunk back into the seat facing forward stunned by everything she had heard. She could see Mark making his way over towards them but he was still far away, Tiane slowly drifted out of the open door dropping to her feet in the red sand. She was numb all over and scared. Were these the same people that planted that spike strip? They were trapped in this god forsaken valley with homicidal freaks, her thoughts went wild with fear and anger. Before she could take more than a couple of steps a loud crack resounded through the quiet valley and the headlight closest to her suddenly went out casting Mark into darkness. Tiane stopped for a second, it almost sounded like plastic being shatter so she ran to the front of the van in time to see the lipless mutant carrying a fist sized rock staring up at her. He was on all fours in front of the last headlight wearing an evil grin stretching back his flaps revealing more of his charred teeth, but she only had to watch for a moment before he smashed the rock into the plastic covering shattering it to pieces and casting the entire valley into complete darkness.

"What… what's going on?" Candice's speech was slurred but she tried her best to speak clearly, her eyes hurt but it was nothing compared to the massive headache and how much her nose resounded with pain. She looked around the small concrete room; there was a small glass window nearly seven feet off the ground that looked as if it were level with the dark sand. There was also a wooden staircase going across the wall opposite of her with an assortment of boxes under it's steps leading up to a metal door, the only other thing in the room was the single shackle hung by a chain bolted into the concrete wall. Her left wrist bore the metal shackle tight, it wasn't tight enough to hurt but was uncomfortable. She was trying to remember what happened and how she got here, a flash of memory shot through her mind, the staring hateful. Another came of the burned, lipless man then another of the sagging flesh hung carelessly from the third man's body, tears rolled down her bloody cheeks as the memories came flooding back.

"No, no, no, no, NO!" She shouted to herself but it was already too late she couldn't stop herself from remembering everything from the merciless pounding of the lipless man's fist into her bloody, broken nose to the spotty memories of being dragged through the sand and carried down those steps. She sat with her legs sucked into her just hugging them with both arms, the chain coming off the wall felt cool to the touch and was spotted with bits of orange rust. After some time she began to crawl over to the boxes hoping for there to be something that might free her, halfway across the room the chain held taut so she stretched her other arm out trying to grasp onto one of the cardboard edges. Her fingers scraped against the side of the closest box just below the top edge so she pulled on her chained arm harder sending shooting pain throughout her body but she kept on reaching. A creaking came from above and dust fell slowly from the steps. Candice froze looking at the bottom step of the staircase as one of her captors stepped out onto the concrete floor holding an old wooden bat. His eyes were stiched shut with black thread in large zigzags, he had small tuffs of grey hairs poking out of his scalp but no ears on the sides of his head. Instead he had holes that were also stiched shut with the same black thread, his skin was tinted with red as if he were plagued with perpetual first degree burns that never healed but just stayed raw. The skin stretched over where his mouth should leaving only his crooked nose for breathing. Candice almost threw up at the sight of the monstrosity standing a little under nine feet away, he crept closer to her but she stayed still. He couldn't see and as far as she knew his hearing would be horrible so she stayed still as he moved slowly closer stepping slowly he was soon five feet away, then three feet, then when he was close enough to reach out and touch her he stopped. Her heart was racing as he seemed to look around the room then suddenly in one swift movement he brought the bat up and slammed it down with devastating force right into the elbow of her chained arm. Everything in the bat's direct path was shatter in impact, her arm bent unnaturally touching her extended inner elbow to her heel and sending horrific, paralyzing pain screaming through every fiber of her being. She screamed in agony as another mutated woman came rushing down the stairs yelling something about a 'Papa Mars' and roughly tore the bat from his hands as he recoiled from her words. She was tall, bearing scars all over her body and her eyes were blood red as if a demon inhabited her body.

"Oh god…" Candice said to herself when she saw the pulpy mess that took her elbow's place and puked uncontrollably this time. It would take her two hours to get back over the wall and huddle herself because of the pain and awkward angle the bat had put her arm in, every movement broke the splintered bones more but staying in that position spread the torture across her body.

"Shit!" Tiane shouted as she sprinted back into the open door frantically slamming it shut behind her as she pulled herself into the back of the van with Dan and Lola shaking violently.

"What happened? What where those sounds?" Dan asked holding Lola in his arms who was resting her tired head in his chest trying to block everything out.

"One of those… things smashed out our headlights," Tiane sobbed as she spoke looking back into the pitch black night through the windshield praying that Mark could get back safely. Dan and Lola couldn't see through the windshield sitting up against the wall since the driver seat blocked the line of sight, Lola did everything she could to hold back the tears gripping Dan's shirt in fistfuls this time.

"Did you lock the doors?" Dan asked seriously looking Tiane dead in the eyes, Lola's eyes got wide at the thought of one of those horrific men coming back for her and Tiane uttered a small cry as she threw herself over the driver seat. She smacked her palm down on the black knob locking the door then leaned over the passenger side locking that door too then dropped back to the carpet sighing a little before beginning o take deep breathes trying to calm herself. A loud thud rang clear through the van freezing all three of them, nobody dare to look over at the driver side window that the sound had originated from. Another thud and another, they were getting faster and harder until Dan swallowed hard and got to his feet despite Lola's protesting grip he slowly moved over to Tiane who cleared the way crawling over to Lola and huddling up in wide eyed fear. Dan crouched down even farther and picked up the knife Lola had tried to use letting his finger wrap around the grooves and holding tightly he slowly moved closer to the front. Mark's face was pressed up against the window looking around until he caught sight of the now Dan, he beckoned him over and pointed at the lock knob looking behind him and back a concerned look covering his face. Dan leaned over and pulled up the black knob and almost immediately the door swung open letting Mark throw climb into the driver seat.

"What the fuck happened? I was out there and I couldn't see my hand in front of my fucking face," he said angrily slamming the door looking the now sighing Dan in the eyes.

"It was all a trap, they wanted us to leave the van, they wanted us to leave the girls… they took Candice and they smashed out headlights," Dan responded quietly looking down as if he was ashamed that he didn't see this coming. Mark's jaw fell and he rushed into he back pushed past Dan, his eyes darted all around frantically searching but to no avail, Lola and Tiane were the only ones back there. Tiane got up as Mark fall to his knees then onto his side, she pulled him up so he was sitting down and held him as she ran one of her hands through his long, red dreadlocks. Dan leaned over and pushed down the black locking knob slowly before silently walking by Mark to Lola where he sat looking down at the ground still holding the small but sharp pocket knife.

"Did you lock the back doors too?" Mark asked still under the shock of losing his sister his voice was distant but everyone turned their heads to see the small plastic knob sticking up out of the door. Dan started tog et up but Mark had already broken from Tiane's hands and crouching over he layed on the luggage and reached out pushing the knob down quickly. In the big window the bulbous face that had been the last thing Michael saw before meeting his violent end, the face belonged to George. He cocked one of his huge, muscular arms and smashed it through the window opening up his meaty fingers and wrapping them around one of the retreating redhead's dreds. Dan launched himself onto Mark who was pulling against the might of George's powerful arms and Tiane had jumped in too pulling with all of her might. The bulbous face of the mutant curled into what seemed like a smile before he gave a great heave pulling mark, Dan and Tiane across the luggage. Mark's head hung outside of the window precariously as he screamed with his arms braced against the window's frame cutting his palms up on the broken glass lining it. Shards of glass that had been sprayed across the back of the van dug into Dan's legs as he and Tiane pulled with everything they had bring Mark back in slightly but it wasn't for more than a moment before another great heave slammed Mark's shoulder's into the frame. He frantically flailed one of his arms trying to grab onto Dan to pull himself in, a desperate attempt by a desperate man but his hand found the knife Dan had been holding just a few seconds ago.

"Eat this you piece of shit!" He shouted sliding his arm out under his chest but another monstrous hand slammed down on Mark's back pushing shards of glass through his arm and the force of it took the knife right out of his grip. The knife hit the ground below kicking up a little cloud of dust as it landed.

"Oh god please don't kill me," Mark pleaded with the huge man who cocked his head to one side before giving some slack on his hair which he took advantage of pulling his arm in and starting to pull his head back in. The powerful arm came up pulling the hair tight again and picking Mark up off the luggage bringing the pack of his neck dangerously close to the glass jutting out of the top of the frame he pulled higher into blood began to dribble from the back of his neck to his throat and fall in fat drops. Then the same powerful arm slammed down taking Mark's exposed through into the shards below slitting his throat. Blood gushed from his jagged wound, Mark gasped for air his arms both flailing wildly now but before long he had grown lax. Dan released his lifeless body sitting back and kicking back trying to get away from the scene but Tiane to his body. Then with another mighty heave Mark's shoulders snapped like brittle leaves and his body was sucked out into the night by the haunting laugh that sent chills through the three remaining teens that could hear it echoing through the valley.


End file.
